A little more than three months after the passing of founder George Randazzo of Bloomingdale, the National Italian American Sports Hall of Fame will hold its annual awards gala in his honor Saturday night in Rosemont. But the organization faces an uncertain future as volunteers try to fill the void left by Randazzo, the group's chief cheerleader and master networker who helped enshrine more than 270 athletes over the course of some four decades.

And after financial difficulties led to the closure last year of the museum's brick-and-mortar home on Taylor Street in Chicago's Little Italy, the organization's directors say they are committed to bringing the prized collectibles Randazzo amassed -- such as Rocky Marciano's first heavyweight championship belt -- out of storage. They've focused their efforts on opening a new permanent museum somewhere in Rosemont.